6 Ways to Optimize Your Supply Chain Processes

Supply chain processes are an important aspect of any business. The supply chain can add significant value to an organization if run properly. A lot of importance is being given to increasing efficiency and optimizing the supply chain processes. Supply chain optimization plays a crucial role in the overall performance of a business.

The financial state of your business largely depends on your supply chain processes. Optimization of these processes can reap great benefits for your business. Here are six tips for supply chain optimization that will increase your profits and productivity:

Inventory management

Inventory management is one of the most crucial components of supply chain management. Balancing between the demand and supply of products is very important for businesses to run smoothly while also minimizing storage costs. Your suppliers must have your demand information to maintain a continuous supply chain. Businesses can incur huge losses from not carrying enough inventory or even from carrying too much inventory.

Inventory optimization can now be done with the help of ERP software that can provide real-time information on exact inventory levels. This can help you avoid unnecessary use of tedious spreadsheets and manual stock keeping. All the data will be available at the click of a mouse, and there will be very little scope for errors.

Logistics optimization

Logistics is another factor that affects the entire economics of your supply chain process. Strategic planning and time management are key to good logistics management. Best methods for optimization in logistics include lead time management, good demand planning, and route optimization.

Lead time cannot be overlooked as it determines if your products will reach customers on time. This is important both for maintaining the goodwill of your customers and for avoiding overnight shipping fees that add up to your logistics cost. Demand planning, on the other hand, is necessary to ensure that you have an optimum lead time, and products can be shipped out on time to meet the demands. Also, optimizing the shipping route for your products can save you both time and money. Optimizing the route to avoid expensive carriers or air shipments can be a big cost saver.

Proper and timely planning of your logistics can help you cut down on a lot of unnecessary expenditure.

Upgrading your warehouse

The warehouse is one place where technology can be a big help to you. Traditional ways of warehouse management are slowly giving way to modern methods. From using robots for warehouse automation to using barcodes and warehouse management software, technology can greatly affect your overall supply chain.

Warehousing optimization involves making the warehousing process faster and more efficient. Automation can reduce human intervention in the warehousing process, making it much faster and easier. Use of technology, like barcoding clubbed with ERP software to keep track of warehouse inventory, can reduce the chances of errors and update real-time data.

Transparency

Transparency in your supply chain processes is just as important as any other factor. Most of the losses incurred in supply chain processes are either due to errors, wastage, or frauds committed by disloyal employees or suppliers. The complete supply chain process must be transparent so that higher management can constantly monitor the process. The data and information from the warehouse should be accessible to everyone concerned with the supply chain.

This can be achieved by employing ERP tools where all the concerned members of the organization can access the data. Both internal and external transparency with suppliers and vendors must be increased in order to have a smoothly functioning supply chain.

Collaborative sourcing of suppliers

Suppliers are an integral part of your supply chain. That is why the strategic selection of suppliers is extremely important to your supply chain management and your business as a whole. It is also important to involve your suppliers in strategy building and decision-making. Suppliers can provide valuable inputs to tackle your supply chain management challenges.

Collaboration, both internal and external, is one of the foundation pillars of any business. Collaborating with your suppliers and taking their views and feedback can hugely improve your supply chain management techniques. This can also lead to streamlining of the process, reduced losses, and better relationships with your stakeholders.

Cost of ownership

One big blunder that most businesses make during procurement is to settle for a supplier who offers the lowest price. What they tend to forget, though, is that the total cost of ownership of the product is what is more important. The total cost of ownership includes operating costs, warehousing costs, transportation costs, and other components, over and above the procurement cost. The procurement cost is hardly 25 to 40 percent of the total cost of ownership. That itself indicates how little it would affect your overall supply chain management costs.

This total cost of ownership has to be minimized if you are looking to reduce overall supply chain management costs. Collaborate with a supplier who can help you bring down the cost of ownership instead of just lowering the procurement cost.

Follow these tips for supply chain optimization and bringing down costs. You are sure to have a much smoother and easier experience managing your supply chain with the help of these tips.